Meta is on the brink of launch third-party chat integration on WhatsApp in Europe, the corporate introduced on Friday. The tech large notes that the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) requires it to provide customers in Europe the choice to talk with folks utilizing third-party messaging companies which have chosen to make their apps interoperable.
“Following profitable small-scale checks over the previous months, the choice for WhatsApp customers to talk with customers of messaging apps BirdyChat and Haiket instantly through third-party chats will quickly be rolling out throughout Europe,” Meta wrote in a weblog submit. “This marks a major milestone in Meta’s compliance with the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) interoperability necessities.”
Customers in Europe who’ve opted in to the third-party integration will be capable of share messages, photographs, voice messages, movies, and recordsdata. The choice to create teams with third-party customers will launch as soon as Meta’s companions are able to assist it, the corporate says.
Over the approaching months, customers within the European Area will start seeing a notification within the “Settings” tab that may clarify the method of opting in to attach with folks on third-party apps. Third-party integrations will solely work on Android and iOS, not on desktops, net, or tablets.
In fact, connecting with folks on different messaging apps is non-obligatory, and customers can flip third-party chats on or off at any time.
Meta says its partnerships with BirdyChat and Haiket are the results of a three-year collaboration with the European messaging companies and the European Fee to develop a third-party chat answer that complies with DMA necessities.
Moreover, the corporate notes that third-party messaging should use the identical stage of end-to-end encryption as WhatsApp. Meta additionally says it has ensured that customers will perceive the variations between chats on WhatsApp and third-party chats.
Again in September 2024, Meta shared what third-party chats on WhatsApp will appear to be, noting that customers will be capable of arrange a chosen folder for third-party messages or go for a mixed inbox. The corporate additionally stated on the time that it could notify customers every time a brand new third-party messaging app grew to become out there.
